


A Rare Bird Indeed

by Enigma_Griffin



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Animal Transformation, Domestic Fluff, Enemies to Friends, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Character Death, In like really low doses, Near Death Experiences, No Romance, Platonic Relationships, duck!quackity AU, half brute technoblade, implied animal death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 23:34:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29143800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enigma_Griffin/pseuds/Enigma_Griffin
Summary: Technoblade rescues a duckling and brings it home. Shenanigans ensue.
Comments: 11
Kudos: 116





	1. Day 1- Techno finds a bird

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Al from Altadoodler's duck!Quackity's AU. 
> 
> Go check him out!! He's got amazing stuff!  
> https://altadoodler.tumblr.com

It was a long walk and it was blisteringly cold, but Techno continued to trudge through the snow. He pulled his cloak tighter around him, nearly burrowing into the heavy red fabric as the frost nipped his face and the wind whipped his hair. Squinting ahead, he could barely see the smoke rising up from his house, the snow blocking his vision. All that could be heard was the crunching of the snow underneath his hooves and the wind whistling through the trees.

It had been a long day, most of it spent mining and cutting down wood for the fire. As a bit of a treat he had dipped into the nether for a moment, spending some time cleaning up the undead that wandered the halls of one of his favorite bastions. He had claimed a few of those sites as vacation houses and only the undead or the stupid dared to tresspass. The nether houses were not nearly as nice as his upper world house, and so he trudged further, even as the snow fell softly around him.

A high pitched shrill shriek echoed in the air, and Techno jumped, his hand falling to his sword. The shrieking call continued, sharp jumpy loud shouts that tried its best to cut through the air. The wind didn't seem to care, carrying and muffling the cry as it continued to call out. After another shout the noise went silent, leaving the whipping of the branches in its wake.

After the initial surprise wore off, Technoblade gathered himself, his mouth twitching in almost annoyance. He wandered toward the sound, knowing whatever caused it was probably already gone to the snow. It was night and the woods were a dangerous place for anyone to be. The noise didn't sound human, but it was far louder than could be expected from some sort of wild animal. He sunk ankle deep in some loose snow and grumbled, shaking his foot free from the cold and brushing past a snow covered tree branch to reveal a pond in a small flat clearing. 

Technoblades brow furrowed, trying to figure out what was happening, when the shriek started again. Well, whatever it was was still alive, and it was still fighting. Looking around the area, Techno finally pinpointed what caused the ruckus. A small duckling was trapped on the upper branch of a tree, while a cat paced the ground underneath it. The ducking squacked again, shouting out in defiance of the cats meows and in fear of its claws. It fumbled on the branch, its wings springing out to try and balance itself on the slippery limb. The cat just paced, calling at the duckling and singing a siren song of rest after a struggle, and the teeth that would provide that rest. 

The dance of mother nature continued and Technoblade looked around, trying to pinpoint the mother of the duckling. She must be long gone, he supposed, deciding to rescue the lives of her remaining brood than risk them all to be cat food. No tracks even remained from the rest of the ducklings' siblings. In the scheme of the things, the family either had left the duckling behind, or he was the last survivor of the group. Neither of those options left much hope for the small bird dangling on the branch. 

He quacked again, fluttering to the tip of the branch as the cat lept in the air, swatting at the branch before lightly landing on the ground again. The branch bounced in the air, causing the duckling to cling to it for dear life. The cat on the ground tensed again, readying itself for the final leap onto the branch. As the cat jumped, the duckling flung itself off the branch, fluttering its barely feathered wings in the cold wind, quacking loudly as it jumped. It raced directly toward the man in the red cloak, jumping, flapping and crying as it ran. 

Technoblade had been watching the scene with a sort of detachment, like watching a skeleton shooting a zombie, or watching a bat fly in circles right before a creeper exploded underneath it. As he watched the duckling scamper towards him, the space between viewer and victim shattered, and he was placed directly into the narrative of whether this creature would live or die. Technoblade paused, stopping himself and questioning what to do next. The duckling was more than halfway towards him now, its calls now directed straight toward the man. 

Was he really going to rescue a duck? This was ridiculous, if it hadn't been for the squawking the duck would have been gone, the cat would have gotten a good meal, and he would be home by now. The cat realized something was amiss, jumping down off the branch and racing towards the duckling. The duckling got caught in some snow, flapping at the ground to try and dislodge itself and run for its life, but it was clear, the cat would reach him before he ever could get out. Thoughts raced in Techno’s head, each idea trying to figure out what to do when a thought cut through the clutter.

“The worst calamities that befall an army arise from hesitation.” 

In an instant, Technoblade swooped up the duckling, plucking it off the ground and away from the clawed animal chasing it. The cat skidded to a halt, moments away from slamming into Technos shins. It meowed, in the way that cats do when their playtoy has been taken, and stared up at the feathered ball currently clutched in the man’s hands. 

“What are you looking at?” Technoblade responded to the meow. The cat meowed again looking at him expectantly. 

“Alright, I don't speak cat. You’re going to have to try someone else.” He deadpanned, staring at the small furry creature. He had been out too long. He was talking to cats now. This didn't spell good things for him. 

The cat seemed to understand in its own way, and turned, deciding it was far too cold to have a proper conversation with a two legger. 

Techno felt the feathery mass start squirming in his hand. He held his palms up, cupping his hands so the duckling could move better. It looked like it was panting and shaking. To be entirely honest, Technoblade wasn't sure that ducks could pant, but its tiny body seemed to be quaking in his gloved palms. The duckling looked up at him, trembling but frozen in his hands. There was almost an intelligence or a bravery behind his eyes, though Technoblade tried to brush that off, thinking that the snow had just gotten in the way.

The duckling quacked at technoblade again before he jumped, leaping up into the fur around his cloak and burrowing underneath the collar. 

“Heh?” Techno tried to shift away from it, but the duckling seemed to have made it his life mission to get as warm as possible. And the warmest thing was right underneath the fluff of Technos coat. 

It nuzzled itself right against his neck, the nearly frozen flippers pressing into his upper shoulder as it settled into this new warm spot. Its beak peaked out from behind the fur of the cloak and Techno could just see it out of the corner of his eye. Technoblade didn't move to get a better look at it this time, concerned that moving his head might dislodge the small duckling from its perch. 

Softly, the duckling made a small quack, resting its head underneath the cloak. It closed its eyes, finally resting after the long ordeal.

Technoblade sighed, resigning himself to the fact that he now had a duck. 

\---

The rest of the walk home was as cold and tiring as the first half, only now Techno had to make sure that a certain small ball of feathers remained safe in his cloak. He finally reached the front door, announcing to the small bird.

“We’re home.” 

The duckling seemed to perk up at the sound of his voice, shifting underneath the cloak and popping its head out from the fur collar. Technoblade began to undo his cloak being careful of the small duckling.

“Lets uh get you out of-” The duckling hopped out, jumping from his shoulder perch up to Techo’s crown before leaping down and onto the windowsill. From there it raced up to a chest, hopping around until it finally found a path up to a table.

“Well, I guess you just took care of that. Looks like this bird is going to be a handful.”

The duckling looked at him from the table and quacked. 

Technoblade hung his cloak up by the door, shaking some of the snow off the bottom of it and leaving it to dry. He unhitched his sword from his waist, hanging the long blade up next to the cloak. Removing the axe next, he set it on the next available hook by the door. Lastly, he set his trident in the corner, at the ready if anyone was trying to get in or if he needed a quick exit. He took a small rag and cleaned some of the bone dust from one of the points of the weapon. They would need to be sharpened again soon, skeletons had a tendency to dull the blades.

The duckling chittered on the table staring at technoblade and drawing his attention from the weapons and back to the yellow creature he had allowed in his house. It seemed to be staring at the variety of swords and axes that hung around the room. There were a pile of bones in the corner, a variety of full animal pelts hung around the room, and the sound of monsters downstairs. The duckling seemed to be questioning whether he had just gotten out of the frying pan to land directly into the fire.

“Alright, we gotta get you some food.” Technoblade commented, walking over to one of his chests and not noticing the ducklings newfound trepidation. “Lets see, what do birds eat. If you were a dog I’ve got enough rotten meat to feed you for a year.

If Techno had been watching he would have seen the ducking gulp in fear.

“Hermmm, seeds! Yeah, that would work, you birds eat seeds right?” Technoblade looked at the duckling, pausing for a long second to silence before turning back to the chest. “Yeah, I'm right.”

Techno gathered a small bag of seeds and a small piece of bread, grabbing a potato for himself to snack on. He settled down at the table and brought over the cloth bag for the ducking. Immediately the duckling raced to the bag and dove headfirst into the seeds.

Technoblade watched the duckling munching down on the table and actually smiled.

The duckling seemed to have a tiny dark bald patch at the top of its head. Looking closer, techno could see the small scar that kept feathers from growing. It looked like the run in with the cat wasn't the only adventure this little bird had. Hesitating, Techno tentatively reached out, moving some of the downy yellow out of the way to get a better view of the scar, using only his fingertips and nails so he didn't hurt the small bird. The duckling didn't seem to mind, focusing on eating and barely registering anything else.

The scar looked as though it had healed over already. It ran the length of the back of its tiny head, revealing soft pink healed skin underneath the feathers.

“That's kinda a big scar you got there.” He commented to the small duck. The duckling looked up at him, almost quizzically. “Does your head get cold?” 

The duckling looked at him and quacked twice before returning to his seeds. Technoblade chuckled. Maybe it was just in his head, but that sounded like a ‘yes’ to him.

“Let me see what I can do.” Techno stepped to one of his chests, the duckling pausing to look at where he was going. He opened it up, rummaging through it a second, and retrieving what looked to be a pair of shears. 

The duckling ruffled his feathers, nervous and gave a small quack. Technoblade smiled, not looking up from what he was doing. 

“Its fine, I’ll be there soon.”

Turning back towards the duckling, Technoblade now carried a pair of shears and a needle and thread. He walked over to one of the cloaks that were handing and snipped off a corner of fabric. Returning to the table he settled down at a chair, bringing the fabric onto the table. The Duckling hopped over, checking out what he was doing.

“Living alone doesnt give me many options. Most of my clothes I have to make myself.” Technoblade explained to the listening bird. “I don't get to flex my sewing skills on the battlefield though.”

He started stitching, long claws delicately balancing the needle as it dipped in and out of the fabric.

“I thought about making something for the wolves, I already made a good deal of them collars and name tags, but most of them don't seem to like to stay alive long enough and I don't want to waste fabric. Not like you, you seem to want to stay alive, and I can appreciate that in a pet.”

The duckling ruffled its feathers, a series of small peeps sounding like laughter sounded in return of his story.

“That's the problem with people, they sometimes don't seem like they want to stay alive, like they want power more than they want life.”

Technobalde held the small hat up to the duckling, checking its size against the tiny bird. 

“I mean look at me, all the power in the world and I’m out in the snow talking to a duck. I'm not bitter or anything, I’m just saying. Gotta have better goals in life than just power.”

The duckling watched as he took two more stitches in the small hat, finishing it off with a small snip of the shears.

“Alright-”

He took the small piece of fabric and carefully fastened it around the head of the duckling, the red fabric making a sort of hat on the top of it’s head. A small band around it to keep it fastened in place. The duckling shook its head, seeing if it could come off. It stayed in place, and the duckling had to admit, it made his head feel better.

“That should help.”

The duckling quacked its thanks, racing around in a small circle happily before diving back into the seeds on the table. Technobalde smirked, watching the duckling eat for a moment before standing up and walking over to the fireplace, leaving the duckling to his meal. 

His ear twitched as he heard a small peep behind him. Techno glanced back to watch the duckling skuttle and hop across the floor, stopping right in front of him. The duckling stood in front of him and looked up expectantly.

Technoblade blinked, his face softening. He crouched down and put his hand out to the duckling. Almost on cue, the duckling hopped into his palm, peeping quietly. It felt cold and soft, a foregin texture underneath Techno’s calloused fingers. He carefully lifted the small creature up and almost immediately the duckling jumped up onto his shoulder again and then jumped onto his head, right behind his crown. 

In an almost doglike fashion, the duckling turned around in his spot and settled on top of the head of Technoblade. He could feel the breathing of the bird even out as it was warmed by the fire and the top of his head.

Technoblade watched the flames of the fireplace, mentally turning over the possibility of building a pond in the backyard. 

He could get used to owning a duck.

  
  



	2. Intermission- The First Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first night from Quackity's point of view.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok! This is a little different. I'm going to be alternating chapters between a more serious, angsty Quackity perspective and the more fluffy scenes from Technoblade perspective. If you don't like the more serious parts, you can skip over all of parts that have 'Intermission' in the title. The normal chapters will still have a continuous story so you shouldn't loose any major parts if you skip the Intermissions.

Quackity almost died today. 

He knew it. This wasn't something he could joke around. It would have been a stupid final death. Death by cat. His remains probably wouldn't even have been found, there would have been no resurrection for him. He would have died his final death.

But he was alive.

Which led him to the next thing he had to process through. Technoblade had saved his life.

Technoblade. The one who had killed him twice before. The one who caused the scar on his head. The Blade. The blood god. Had saved a duckling. A fucking duckling. 

It didn't make sense.

The entire thing had been one big accident. Quackity had just been exploring, trying to get a better understanding of the terrain around Technoblades base. He hadnt seen the creeper until it was too late. The shock was just enough to scare him out of being human and the injuries from the explosion had been enough to keep him as a duckling.

It was everything he didn't want to happen, everything he had set up precautions against. He had gotten too weak and too cocky in the wilderness. His previous close calls had been enough to bolster his ego. Nothing could touch him. He had been just plain stupid. 

Maybe the biggest show of stupidity was that he hadn’t told anyone that he could turn into a duckling. Hiding it became second nature, he had become adept at keeping secrets. With his friends, the duck thing had been a joke, and he had been very careful to only play it as a joke. 

He had always been careful not to get too low on health with his friends, always brought an extra golden apple or a potion, just in case. The only time he had gotten close was on the battlefield. Even then, he had already taken a couple potions beforehand as a precaution, so it hadn't really been that close. The potions were a quick way to make sure that he stayed human and he made sure to bring one in any situation he could get close to death. If he took the potion and got hurt he wouldn’t transform. Potion equals no transformation. No potion meant turning into a duck if he got hit.

The potion was the other thing he had forgotten at home. 

So he was caught in the middle of a snowy wilderness, with nothing to his name and no way to get any food to try and get back to a healthy human form. And then a fucking cat showed up. He had been lucky to get up onto that tree branch. 

From there everything had been instinct. Screaming for help, trying to fight the clawed creature, it was just like a fight only he was a bird and he was trapped and it was cold and there was no escape-

And then fucking Technoblade showed up.

Quackity opened one of his eyes to check if the man next to him was asleep. Quackity had been placed on the side table, next to Technoblades crown. Quackity could see his own fuzzy reflection in the gold, the hat Techno had made- 

Quackity’s mind ground to a halt. He started laughing, which came out as a series of small peeps. He was wearing a hat. A hat- A hat that Technoblade- that Techno-. The peeping started growing in volume. The sheer absurdity of it all. Technoblade had made him, made a duck, a fucking hat. No one was going to believe this. 

The pink haired man on the bed grumbled and turned in his bed. Quackity swallowed his laughter but it was too late, Technoblade was awake. His tired eyes seemed to glow in the dark. And they were looking right at him. Quackity couldn't read what Techno was feeling, he was transfixed by the strange eyes staring at him. He ruffled his feathers under the gaze, fluffing up slightly and giving a small quack that he thought was going to sound tougher. 

“Mmph, Can’t sleep, ey?” Technoblade asked.

Quackity paused, deciding to respond with a small quack. Yes. Of course. He couldn't sleep. That's the reason why he was awake and making noise. 

Technoblade seemed to understand his response. He shifted on the bed, moving further from the side table. The entire weight of the bed seemed to shift with him, and Quackity gave a softer quack, trying to figure out what he was doing. By the time he had finished moving, there was an empty pillow between the side table and where Technoblade lay. 

Technoblade moved the pillow closer to the side table, giving a bit more of a distance between his own pillow and the edge of the bed. He patted down a small section of the pillow, creating a small indentation on it.

“Alright, that should help. Go on, you can sleep here.” 

Quackity looked at the pillow, and then up at Technoblade. Was this really happening? Was he about to hop on one of technoblades pillows? Quackity figured he didn't have anything to lose. With a small chirp, Quackity hopped into the pillow- 

oh that was  _ soft _ . That was so much softer than he expected. Quackity padded around, feeling the fabric under his flippers. It was almost silk-like, but it felt warmer than silk, and whatever the pillow was filled with was so soft and so cozy too. It compressed under his webbed flippers, sinking him into the pillow. It reminded him of his nest at home, like he could just sink into the pillow and everything was ok. 

Quackity settled into the small spot, closing his eyes and feeling content already. He didn't even realize he was happily quacking until he had gotten fully settled in the comfy pillow. When he finally opened his eyes he saw a small smile on Techno’s face. 

“A little better huh? Alright, well, go to sleep duck.” 

The man rolled around, turning his back to Quackity. Quackity fluffed his feathers, settling into the pillow and feeling sleep calling to him. He was still way too weak, way too scared even, to turn back into a human. Even if he did, what would happen then? He was a duckling now, and was going to have to stay as a duckling for a little while. 

And if that meant sleeping on a very soft pillow, being fed seeds, and being carried around for a few days, Quackity figured that was a sacrifice he was willing to make.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter chapter, but I hope you like it!


	3. Day 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Techno's second day with his new duckling.

The next morning Technoblade woke up to a beak pecking him in the face.

He swatted at the creature, rolling over to the other side of the bed. His ears twitched as he heard the patering of webbed feet again and felt the small bird leap onto his shoulder. He could feel the shuffling of the ducklings feet as it lost purchase on the shoulder and tumbled onto his neck. He gave a soft growl in annoyance of the thing, trying to ignore it and return to blissful sleep. 

He was able to ignore it for maybe a second before the duckling quacked directly into his ear.

Technoblade jumped up, flinging the duckling into the pillows next to him.

“Gah!” He yelped, rubbing his ear. He had big ears. They were very sensitive to noise. Its how he was able to find people. Ducks quacking into them at loud volumes did not feel good.

The duckling quickly regained his footing, twisting himself upright on the pillow and hopping onto the bed. He quacked some more, chidding the still sleepy Techno for throwing him after he had done nothing that would possibly annoy Techno. The duckling hopped right on Technoblades knee, quacking duck profanities at him.

Techno paused rubbing his ear to look down at the small thing who had woken him up. His hair was disheveled, strands of it falling over his face as he resigned himself to being awake.

“How can one tiny bird be so loud?” He commented on the ball of feathers. The duckling quacked again at him. 

“I was having a good sleep.” He groaned, beginning to move to get out of bed. The duckling hopped off his knee and onto the bed, jumping from bed to pillow to bedside table. 

Groggily, Techno swung his legs over the side of the bed and rested for a moment, dragging his hands over his face in an attempt to wake up. He ran his hands through his hair, pulling it back up and out of his face, reaching for a ribbon to tie it back for the day and brushing off the duckling who happened to be standing right on that ribbon. With a small quack the duckling jumped off, watching Techno pull his hair back. He missed a few shorter strands which fell back into Technoblades face. 

Techno ran his hand over his face again, taking a moment to wake up and reconnect with himself after being shoved into the waking world so rudely. Something was going on with his teeth, they seemed bigger than when he went to sleep. He reached up and could feel his tusks protruding a bit further today than yesterday. Feeling his skin again, he could tell he was once again a bit more fuzzy than usual, his nose a bit more upturned than the day before. Even his hands looked a bit more furry, a bit larger even, than yesterday.

The duckling quacked at him, obviously upset it had taken him this long to get out of bed. Obviously the duckling was able to do it, so it couldn't have been that hard. Technoblade sighed, looking tiredly at the small yellow ducking. 

“I’m up. What do you want from me.” He asked.

The duckling quacked at him, jumping off the side table and running to the ladder that led downstairs. He hopped onto the top rung and hopped off again. 

“Oh. The ladder.” Technoblade gave a bit of a laugh as he stood up. “Couldn't you just- fly? Can’t ducks, like, fly?” 

Giving a quack only could be interpreted as exasperated, the duckling jumped back on the top rung and jumped off, running right up to Technoblade before giving him another quack. Technoblade stared down at the small yellow bird, sighing before standing.

He stretched his hoved legs out, reaching up to the ceiling to stretch and cracking his back before crouching down for the duckling. On cue, the duckling hopped up, staying in Techno’s hand as he retrieved his crown from the side table. Putting his crown on, Techno brought the duckling back up to his head allowing the duckling to hop back up behind his crown. 

“Alright. I’m gonna guess you want some more food.” He commented, feeling the duck shift around at the top of his head. The duckling pushed Technoblades crown slightly so he could have a better view of where the man was going. The duckling quacked on the top of his head causing Technoblade to smile despite how tired he was. 

Climbing down and reaching his main floor, Technoblade paused, taking his time and stretching again as he reached the landing. The duckling did not want to him to take his time and ran in a circle on his head, gearing up and leaping from the crown and plummeting down to the floor. 

“Oop!” Technoblades’ hand shot out, snatching the bird mid fall his crown half falling off his head as he caught the duckling. The duckling quacked at him, annoyance in his tone.

“You just- why would you do that? I was just stretching. You could have waited.”

The duckling quacked in his hands. Techno stared at him. This was a duck. Technoblade set the duck on the floor, letting him hop out of his hands. He stood up again, looking down at the duckling for a moment.

The duckling stared right back at him. He wasn't backing down, even if he was wrong. The duckling quacked defiantly at Technoblade. Techno sighed, shaking his head and started towards the chests.

“Alright, alright. I’ll get you food.”

True to his word, Technoblade retrieved a bag of seeds, setting it once again on the table. Leaving the duckling to his meal, he started his daily chores, stoking up the fire so the house could get warm again, tidying up the small area, and getting a few potions ready for brewing. The duckling ate while keeping one eye on Techno as he moved around the small space. 

Finally, Technoblade retrieved a potion bottle and a potato, coming back to the table. He was just about to sit down, when the duckling quacked at him. He froze in his motion and looked up at the yellow bird. The duckling looked right at him and started panting.

“Heh?” Techno questioned, trying to process. “Ducks.. You're telling me ducks can pant?” 

The duck quacked at him and kept panting. The wheel was turning in Technoblades head, but the hamster was still stuck on the fact that ducks could pant. 

“Ok, you’re too hot?” He asked. The duckling made no response, just continued his panting.

“You’re hot- Oh! I know. Water, ducks need water. I’m smart.” 

He got back up, snatching a bucket of water and setting it up on the table. The duckling jumped up and ran around excitedly. 

“Yeah, I thought you'd like that. Alright. Let's get you in there.” 

Techno reached for the duckling who eagerly lept into his hand. He brought the duckling up, setting it gently into the bucket of water. The duckling happily started swimming around the bucket, slurping up some water. Technoblades face softened slightly watching the critter flap around in the water.

“Heh. I guess there is a reason why ducks like water.”

He settled down to the table, taking a large gulp of the strange tinted potion in his hand. He grimaced at the taste and wiped his mouth after drinking. He ran his finger over one of the small tusks that protruded from his mouth thoughtfully. He took a bite of the potato before pointing at the duckling.

“You kinda freaked me out when you jumped off my head ok, I’m kinda a tall person, so that fall could have been bad. Just, wait till I get to the table next time, ok?” He asked the duckling. 

The duckling in the bucket looked at him for a moment. There hadn't been any trace of emotion in the man’s face but there was something in his eyes. The way he watched how close the bucket was to the edge of the table and how much the splashing shifted the bucket that showed he actually cared for the safety of this bird. The duckling quacked in agreement.

“Alright, we’ve got a deal.”

Techno returned to munch on his potato, glancing out the window to see the snow still coming down in sheets.

“It's gonna be too cold out there for you little fella. I’m not big about keeping creatures against their will, but judging from what happened yesterday, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that you might need to stay until the storm passes.”

The tone of the duckling’s quack was unreadable. 

“We’ve got enough food here, I might need to go get firewood tomorrow, but ya know, that's tomorrow's problem. All I’ve got today is feeding the dogs, brewing potions, maybe doing a bit of villager trading.” 

Technoblade took another bite of the potato and the duckling hopped out of the bucket, shaking himself off on the table. Techno didn't seem to mind the water and reached for one of the hand towels he kept by the table, bringing it over for the duckling to dry off in.

“Oh, right, Phil has been bugging me about organizing the chests. I think his exact words were ‘Techno, your chests are makin me fucking mental.’ And you know, he's my friend, I do care about his well being. So I gotta fix up the chests. Shouldn't take too long.”

The duckling had burrowed into the towel, creating a small duckling sized lump in the fabric as he dried off. The lump became increasingly frantic as it tried to find the exit of the towel. Techno smiled, and removed the towel from on top of the ducklings head, folding it up and setting it by the bucket. The duckling looked up with him and shook himself dry again, becoming a puffy fluff ball on the table. 

Techno picked up the duckling’s hat, which had fallen off during the drying off process, and dried it off placing it back onto the duckling’s head. He smoothed some of the ducklings feathers in the process of giving the hat back, before returning to his potato. The duckling seemed surprise by the show of care but immediately ran back to the towel to finish drying his flippers.

With a final bite, Techno finished off the potato and stood up, picking up the water bucket off the table as well. He began to finish cleaning, using the rag to wipe down the table before hanging it up to dry again. Grabbing the cloak that were drying by the fireplace he returned to the chair. The good thing about having hooves is that he never had to bother with boots, a trip outside was just a cloak away.

“Alright, well, I’m going to feed the dogs, you want to come too?” He asked as he wrapped the warm cloak around him. 

The duckling looked up from his towel and quacked in agreement. Technoblade smiled, reaching out a hand for the duckling to hop onto. He was about to place the duckling on his shoulder when the duckling quacked, and jumped off the hand and landed on Techno’s ear before scrambling to the top of his head again. 

“You seem to really like that spot, don't you?” Techno dryly asked the duckling, looking up at his own head. He got another quack in response. “Alright then, you can stay.”

Pulling the fluffy collar up and stepping out into the cold wind, the pair went about the daily chores together, Technoblade doing the heavy lifting and the duckling giving encouragement from on top of his head.

\---

The sun was just setting as the pair settled in for an evening meal. A warm bowl of soup waited for Technoblade and a small bowl of broth with a side of seeds for the duckling. Technoblade regaled the duckling with tales of his first time making a mushroom soup, and his realization after that he had in fact made a poison potion and not soup. The duckling seemed to squint at the soup in his bowl after that story, and Techno reassured him that he had learned how to actually make soup now. 

While eating, Technoblade absentmindedly ran his tongue over his tusks and was pleased to find that they had returned to their usual size, just barely poking out of his mouth. A quick check of his nose reassured him that it had been taken care of too. 

He lifted the bowl up, drinking the remaining contents of the broth. The duckling seemed to yawn, cozying himself in a pile of feathers on the table. The room was warm with the fire they had gathered, and he was full and sleepy. Technoblade gathered the dishes, cleaning them off and setting them on the drying rack for the evening. His eyes were soft and tired as well as he glanced at the duckling and then towards the rocking chair that sat next to the fireplace. Its warm worn cushion beckoning him.

“I think I’m going to do a bit of reading. If you need something, wait until I’m done.” Technoblade stated. 

The duckling glanced up as Technoblade went up the ladder and to his bookshelf. He scanned the titles, searching for the ones that suited his mood for the day, wavering between two books. Still indecisive, he retrieved two volumes from the bookshelf, one thin and covered in a white cover, and one larger with gilded lettering. Returning downstairs, he dragged the rocking chair in front of the fireplace, getting the attention of the duckling on the table. He set the chair down with a groan and plopped into the seat, rocking back and forth a couple of times. 

He leaned back in the chair, stretching his piglin legs out and propping his hooves in front of the crackling fire. Debating between two of the books, he opened the smaller volume first, flipping through the pages and scanning the words.

The duckling became curious, popping his head up and looking over at the man. He seemed very cosy and warm in front of the fire. The duckling hopped off of the table and onto the chair, finally jumping onto the floor. He scurried towards the fireplace and towards Techno, giving him a small quack as he reached the chair.

Technoblade glanced down, noticing the yellow fluff ball on the floor.

“You don't like to be left alone for long do you?” He asked dryly. The duckling quacked in response, flapping his arms out. 

“Alright.” Techno reached down, picking up the duckling from the floor and placing it on his lap. Not happy with his position, the duckling hopped back onto the arm, flapping up until he reached Technoblades shoulder. He settled down on the shoulder of the man, looking down at the book in Techno’s hand. He quacked questioningly.

“I read poetry sometimes, don't question it. Emily Dickison is a great author. Don't judge me duck.  This one is even about a bird like you."

_ “‘He glanced with rapid eyes _

_ That hurried all around — _

_ They looked like frightened  _

_ Beads, I thought — He stirred his Velvet Head _

_ Like one in danger, Cautious, _

_ I offered him a Crumb _

_ And he unrolled his feathers  _

_ And rowed him softer home’” _

Technoblade caught a small bit of movement and glanced down just as the duckling finished yawning at the poem.

“Not a fan of poetry I see.”

The duckling quacked in response. Techno sighed slightly, making the unconscious decision to pander to a duck. He set down the thin volume and picked up the larger one. It was a worn book with a deep dark brown and the cover was embossed with the word ‘THE ILIAD’ in gold. Techno seemed to smile and he looked over the book.

“Alright, this one. Now, this, this, is one of my favorites.”

The duckling happily quacked and seemed to settle, nesting on the shoulder and looking over at the book as he read. Techno cracked open the book, flipping past the first few pages that contained the forward.

“Here we go, ‘ _ Rage- Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles, Murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaens countless losses _ ,’”

“You might be beginning to see why I like this book.” Technoblade stated, glancing at the small duckling. 

The duckling fluffed his feathers and gave a smaller quack. Techno smiled.

“It gets better, this is just the introduction. They want to get the reader hooked before the actual plot happens. It's how writing works.” He reassured the duckling gesturing to the book. Taking the reassurance, the duckling relaxed again, untensing on his shoulder.

“Good choice. Alright, moving on,” Technoblade cleared his throat before starting again.

“‘Begin. Muse, when the two first broke and clashed.” Techno read aloud, “‘Agamemnon lord of men and brilliant Achilles.”

The story of Achilles filled the warm cottage, Techno’s voice bringing the story a new life even though it was his twentieth time reading it. The duckling was enraptured by the tale, the story becoming real as he stared into the fireplace. He could almost see Apollo speaking with the mortals and the rage between Agamemnon and Achilles. In the flames, the book became visible, the words became the blood of the tale, and the story gained a soul.

As Techno finished the first chapter and closed the book he glanced down to see the duckling fast asleep on his shoulder. Carefully he picked up the small bird, holding it delicately in his hands. He set the book next to the fireplace. Maybe tomorrow they would get to read the gathering of the armies. Tonight, he was more concerned about getting the small duckling up to his pillow.

A nest might be nice to make for the duckling, Techno thought. He began to brainstorm different things that might make life easier for the duckling, planning out his next day even as he fell asleep.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please understand, I had to create dialog between a man who doesn't do social situations well and a freaking duck. I tried my best.


End file.
